Josephine Baker is famous for this quote:
"The white imagination is sure something when it comes to blacks"
what could Josephine Baker mean by this quote? How does Helga Crane and Nella Larsen exemplify this in the novel? How is Larsen and Helga speaking to this idea of the white imagination run wild?
Assignment:
Create your own glog which reflects on the question of the white perspective of the black spectacle during the period in which the novel is set. Use any medium required: film, art, quotes, photographs, or even your own words and visual creations.
Questions to consider:
- What does 'black spectacle' mean?
- How could this be articulated visually?
- Who were prominent figures in entertainment during this period?
- Think of the audience's reactions to Josephine Baker within her films. What does this say about the white imagination?
okay . . .the "white imagination" is obviously a big problem in Quicksand - - or pace Du Bois the black self-knowledge of the white imagination . . . I'm wondering if you couldn't guide the students focus a little more . . . i.e. are there particular things that the white imagination seized on in its fantasies of blackness? . . fascinations with the body, costume, movement, settings, community, sexual signifiers, speech acts, etc. . . . in other words, looking at Josephine Baker, what about her (appearance, movement, setting, speech, etc.) is supposed to signify "blackness" to a white viewer - - what kind of "blackness"? e.g. can you help the students to look for these signifiers a little more concretely? . . . is there a way to give them some more tools to analyze the images and texts with?
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